Lion eyes

Lion

Elephant crossing

Storks

Namibia

Zambia

Grand Teton

Yellowstone

Elephants

The Valley of Elephants

This 160 pages photo book covers the story of the elephants of South Luangwa National Park in Zambia. South Luangwa National Park was nicknamed ‘Valley of the Elephants’ by its founder, the late Norman Carr. The elephants in Zambia’s most famous national park live a life full of interaction with people. The people who live on the other side of the Luangwa River (the river is the park boundary) often curse the elephants for raiding their crops at night. The elephants cross the river at sunset, knowing perfectly well they are uninvited guests. In the early morning they cross again, and return to the safety of the park. The books shows the life of the elephants and the other animals, but also deals with these problems and shows how local farmers are instructed to use ‘Chilli fences’ to protect their crops from the elephants.

But the most amazing happening is in November of each year, when a small group of elephants makes daily visits to Mfuwe Lodge, to eat the ripe fruits of the big wild mango tree in the garden. They walk the same route as they always did, and do not mind that this walk leads them straight through the lodge reception. “It’s our park, and we were here first”, they seem to think. Johan used a remote controlled camera to capture these visits in a spectacular series of photos.